[GAP] Ada 2005 API

[Ned Okie]

Sorry that my original question may not have been clear.  Yes, the 
question is referring to the online docs for the java standard library, 
which, of course, is found here:

  http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.5.0/docs/api/

This page, which is the first hit on a google search for "java api",  
refers to itself as the "API specification for the Java 2 Platform 
Standard Edition 5.0".

Here is the actual student question that prompted my request: "Is there 
a good ADA online API that you know of? I've been googling it and I 
can't seem to find anything. I was thinking that there might be 
something similar to the online java API."  Students ask essentially the 
same question several times each semester.  They want an online 
reference that will provides quick answers to questions such as what 
routine converts an unbounded string to a string, what routines are 
available for the Calendar package, and what kinds of containers are 
available. 

Part of my task in working with these students is overcoming their "why 
do we have to learn this language" mentality.  A part of  that mentality 
seems to stem from their frustration in not having a quick and familiar 
online way to access to information on the predefined library.  The 
section Annex A of the Reference Manual contains this information, but 
it is presented differently from what they are used to, and in some ways 
it is less convenient than the "java api".  Many of the students have 
copies of Barnes's Ada 2005 book, and so they can get clear explanations 
of the predefined library when they have the book with them, but they 
also want an online reference.

Ned

--
Edward G. Okie (Ned)
Professor of Computer Science                www.it.radford.edu/~nokie
Department of Information Technology         nokie at radford.edu
219 Davis Hall                               540-831-5992 (Office)
Radford University                           540-831-6706 (FAX)
Radford VA, 24142-6933



baker at cs.fsu.edu wrote:
> This is an interesting query, for me, since it uses the term "API" in  
> a way that I find new.  For me "API = Application Program Interface",  
> and the interface to some language-independent service, say an OS or a  
> database.
> Thus, Florist would be the Ada API for Unix, and the Unix C libraries  
> would provide an API for the same thing.  Here, the term "API" seems  
> to be referring to the online documentation for the Java standard  
> libraries.  Is that correct?  If so, then Arnaud's answer would be the  
> most apropos.  --Ted
>
> Quoting Edmond Schonberg <schonberg at adacore.com>:
>
>   
>> On Feb 21, 2008, at 12:02 PM, Edward G. Okie wrote:
>>
>>     
>>> Does anyone know of an Ada API specification anywhere on the web?
>>>
>>> My students who are learning Ada frequently ask me whether there is an
>>> Ada API specification available on the web.  When they learned Java,
>>> they typically relied heavily on the online Java API, and as they are
>>>       
>> This may be the problem.  The core of the language is quite
>> independent of API's.  The type model, the control structures,
>> subprograms and parameter passing,  genericity, concurrency, etc. do
>> not need any API's to be understood.  If your students are looking
>> for other interfaces when the core of the language provides
>> everything they need, they are  looking in the wrong place.  This
>> means that the motivation must be other than to write web
>> applications, of course.
>>
>>     
>>> learning Ada they are a bit frustrated to not have a similar
>>> reference.
>>> There is a version for Ada 95 available on the AdaBrowse site, but I
>>> don't know of anything similar for Ada 05.  The Ada Reference Manual
>>> does provide similar information, but they want something closer to
>>> the
>>> Java API.
>>>
>>>       
>> Ed Schonberg
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